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Big Smoke Burger, Toronto’s dominant better-burger brand, is penetrating the U.S. markets, having already signed multiunit deals for major metro areas such as New York City, Chicago, Detroit, and Denver.

Cameron Tune of JCT Management Company, LLC, the franchisee for the Denver/Boulder metro areas, recently signed a five-unit deal in which he plans to open one per year over the next five years, starting with his first unit set to open this month.

Tune signed a lease in Phase II of the City Set project, a major commercial development in the Cherry Creek area of Denver.

While Phase I of the project has been around for some time, Phase II of the project is still in development, making Big Smoke Burger and Tune first movers on the site.

This phase of the project is set to include a hotel, a World of Beer, and six restaurants.

Tune’s GM for the first unit, Ken King, has more than 40 years of restaurant business experience in the roles of owner, consultant, and CEO, and is recognized in the industry as an expert in restaurant design, development, and operations.

“The better-burger market in Colorado is immature compared to the rest of the country,” Tune says. “I was immediately attracted to the business model, which consisted of simple menu/operations, positive cash flow, and product superiority at a reasonable value.”

Big Smoke Burger has six corporate locations open, but its franchise expansion took off worldwide after partnering with Fransmart and signing major deals in 2012 for both the U.S. and the Middle East, as well as master franchise deals in 2013 for the UAE and the KSA.